Syracuse police find dog locked in abandoned house

Syracuse officers who were responding to a call in the 500 block of Seymour Street Sunday afternoon heard a dog barking in a boarded-up house at 549 Seymour St.

Because there was no longer an entryway, they unscrewed doors and found the dog in a closet in a back bedroom. The floors were so saturated with urine and feces, they were starting to give way and there was no access to fresh air. Officers found an empty dog food bag and empty water jugs in the closet.

The house had no electricity and no running water. It's unclear how long it had been uninhabited. A neighbor told them a man comes once or twice a month to check on the dog and that's been going on for about four months.

SPCA animal cruelty officers confiscated the timid, emaciated dog. Police are still trying to determine who left it there.